Improvement in canal-locks



kINITnD STATES PATENT aries..

IMPROVEMENT IN CANAL-LOCKS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent N0. 37,265, dated December 23, 1362.

To all whom. it 'may concern Be it known that I, SAMUEL J. SEELY, of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Method of Constructing' Canal-Locks of' Metal; and I do hereby declare that the following is a f'ull, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, forming part of this specification, in which- Figure lis a perspective sectional view ofa lock constructed according to my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan, and Fig. 3 a longitudinal section of' the same.

Similar letters of reference in the several figures indicate corresponding` parts.

The nature of my invention consists in a novel method ofempioying meta-l, ofcorrugated or ribbed configuration, in the construction of canal-locks, and thus saving the immense labor and expense attending the finishing and setting of stone masonry in the erection ot'such locks.

My invention enables me to widen the present locks i n use at a small cost and very speedily, and thus adapt them for river gun-boats, and at the same time increase their capacity for commercial purposes. The materials l use can be readily obtained in a finished condition. TheyT possess all the strength necessary, and can be set, after my method, in a very short time after the lock-chamber is excavated.

To enable others skilled in the art to perform with my invention, I will proceed to describe the same with reference to thedrawin gs.

In f'orm and arrangement my canal-lock is the. same as any ofthe approved locks now in use.

In proceeding to erect a new, complete lock, the bed of the lock-chamber is laid with concrete A, and upon the concrete corrugated cast-iron plates B B are set and embedded, so as to form a tirm support for the fiooring. The upper corrugations are filled in with wood strips aa, but the under corrugations become filled with concrete. Upon the support thus formed the ooring O O rests, being nailed to the wooden strips a a and confined by the side walls hereinafter described. The joints of the corrugated plates are sustained against the weight of the structure by means of' narrow corrugated ties b b, arranged under the joints and embedded into the concrete. It will be seen that the flooring has for its support a series of' small arches. The side walls of' the loclrchamber are now erected by arranging corrugated cast-iron plates F F against solid wood structures D D, formed against the side banks, E E, as represented. Ihese plates are tied to thel flooring-support by means of' corrugated ties c c and elbows G G, as shown. On the inner surface of the plates F F stout boiler or sheathing plate H is bolted and allowed to rest upon the fiooring, a cleat, s, confining the lower edge. The outer corrugations of the plates are filled in with strong piles e c, driven firmly into the ground, or these corrugations and the inner corrugations, ff, maybe filled in with grouting, so as to secure the proper firmness of the side walls. The side walls are anchored, as shown at I, to the banking 7 at various points for the purpose of rendering them firm and solid with respect tothe banking. These anchors are embedded into the ground, and their inner ends pass through the corrugated plating and receive a strong screw-nut thereon. abutment L are made of' stone-work, and are of the usual construction. The sills g g are of wood, and arranged about as shown. The gate-channels M M are walled up with corrugated metal plates h 71., which are backed by r wood-work t' and packed, intermediate, with l concrete, and faced with boiler-plate or sheath` ing iron j, as shown. Concrete or wooden piles are introduced into the eorrugations bet-ween the plates hand the sheathing metal. The sheathing metal H2 at the upper and lower ends of the lock-chamber should be increased in thickness over the metal used between the two gates, so that the contact ot' a boat at these points may be withstood and injury to the lock prevented. rlhe upper edges of the side banks and the side walling, as well as the i walls of the gates, are tinished with heavy l copingstone N, as rel'nesented. The coping i may be anchored to t-he side walls and banking by anchors Z, similar in form to the anchors I; but these anchors must run vertical, i instead of horizontal.

Any mode of locking the coping stones together may be adopted, so long as the end dcsired is attained.

In order to save the sheathing of the side g walls from injury when a boat is riding up and i down in the lock-chamber, wooden battens m The breast-walls J K and mv may be fastened in a vertical position to these walls, as shown. The flooring` of the, sedimentwtell Ois also constructed in substanl tially the same manner as deseribed. The gates may be arranged to operate with a sliding or a swing motion. I however prefer the slide movement, and my look, as shown, is adapted to the same.

In applying my invention to the widen-ing of a lool; the enlarging portion ot' the chamber is formed before disturbing the existing walls; but when the enlargement is completed the intermediate wall is removed and the two seotions ot' look finished, so as to constitute but one large look adapted for one large gun-boat or two or four commercial vessels. i

What I claim as my invention, and desire secure by Letters Patent, is- Y 1. The method, substantially as herein described, of constructing` canal-looks, whereby metal instead of masonry is used to give the requisite strength to the whole structure.

2. Sustaining the side walls and bottom or flooring ofeanal-loeks by means of corrugated metal or its equivalent, substantially as described.

3. The sustaining` the walls ot' the gateehannels by means of corrugated metal or its equivalent, substantially as described.

Witnesses: SAML. J. SEELY.

GUSTAVE DIETERICH, DE WITT G. LAURENCE. 

